Apple Misses Q4 Projections on Lower-Than-Expected iPad Sales

Apple reported its fourth quarter numbers today with mixed results. The company missed expectations for of iPad sales , while beating estimates for iPhone shipments. The company reported earnings of $8.67 per share, which is slightly off analyst's estimates of $8.75 per share. Still, its $35.97 billion in sales was higher than the $35.8 billion in projected sales, according to AllThingsD.

While Apple's results may dissappoint some investors, Q4 results were far higher than those in the previous year. In the fourth quarter of 2012, Apple recorded a net income of $8.2 billion, compared to $6.6 billion in 2011.

According to MarketWatch, Apple was expected to ship 17 million iPads, but instead moved 14 million. Apple's iPhone shipments were expected 26 million units, but the actual total was 26.9 million.

The lower-than-expected iPad shipments could be linked to a mixture of supply issues and consumers expecting the iPad mini to launch. At press time, Apple's shares were down 1 percent in after hours trading.